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Noble Puts New York State Wind Project on Hold

Wind developer Noble Environmental Power has temporarily suspended construction of its 21MW project in Bellmont, New York, apparently due to financial concerns.

In an interview with New Energy Finance, a representative of Noble acknowledged that construction at Bellmont project has been halted but declined to say why the decision was made or when building would resume.

Noble recently began putting the finishing touches on construction of its 107MW wind farm in the neighbouring town of Chateaugay, but has only laid foundations and wiring for the 14 turbines to be erected in Bellmont, Town Supervisor Bruce Russell told New Energy Finance.

Russell went on to say that in a recent meeting he attended with his deputy supervisor and Noble CEO Walter Howard, town officials were told that the decision to put a hold on construction in Bellmont was due to a combination of conditions, including the credit crunch, the bankruptcy of the lead broker of its proposed IPO, Lehman Brothers, and an ongoing investigation by state Attorney General Andrew Cuomo.

However, Russell made clear that, from his viewpoint, Noble had not engaged in any illegal or inappropriate activity. 'There has been nothing to suggest these guys have dealt anyway other than straight up. I don't see how Noble has been out of line, as far as unfair practices or conflicts of interest,' said Russell.

Russell said he was confident that if and when the investigation gets set aside, or Noble is cleared from the allegations, access to financing would return. 'Yea, I'd like this process to move faster, but it's a real world, and if you can't get the money, how are you going to do it? The reality is, while we have an arrangement to move forward with a wind park, we are on hold until mid-year or slightly past mid-year,' Russell said.

To date, Noble has received financial backing from JPMP Wind Energy, a fund affiliated with the private equity arm at JP Morgan, which is advised by CCMP Capital and the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board. Since the demise of Lehman, Noble has added Citi to its list of underwriters for its IPO, in addition to JP Morgan and Credit Suisse.

Local newspaper the Malone Telegram first reported that construction at Bellmont had been halted.